An unusual and probably makeshift fleam. The 19th century steel blade is fixed in a fixed into a wooden insert within a brass etui. The lid of the etui is cork lined, the top is decorated with a stallion and the base is decorated with concentric rings.

The steel blade is still sharp and in good condition, but almost certainly older than its case (which would do for a match strike). I am sure that this was a veterinary fleam, perhaps fashioned in the early 20th C. It was purchased from Germany.

• From the Phisick collection